To mark the launch of The Big Lunch in Wales this year we have teamed up with Media Wales to find the the friendliest streets in the South Wales Valleys - the place that boasts the happiest postcode, the most helpful neighbours and the most cheerful community!
We’re searching for a street that can show the country what being a good neighbour is all about. We’re hoping that finding the friendliest street in each area will remind us just how important it is to have good neighbours and how much easier life is when you know and get along with the people who live around you.
As we found last year, knowing your neighbours can make a huge difference to your wellbeing and really add to your sense of pride in your area. A survey we ran in 2014 found more than three quarters (77%) of people surveyed in Wales considered their neighbour to be a friend, compared with just one in 10 in England.The research also showed the impact that knowing your neighbours can have on people with nearly nine out of ten (88%) people saying they felt happier as a result of chatting to their neighbours and two thirds said it really brightened up their day.
Naturally we all lead busy lives so it’s not always easy or convenient to stop and chat but it is important to make time. These everyday interactions have positive impact on not only the individual but the wider society, too. It makes people feel like they matter and are part of their local community.
So that’s why we’re looking for a street that really stands out for being the friendliest in the area – the sort of street filled with people we’d all like to sit down and share lunch with.
How to enter
If you think your neighbourhood deserves to win the friendliest street in the Valleys competition, simply finish this sentence in no more than 200 words: “My street is the friendliest street in (include as appropriate – Cynon Valley; Rhondda; in and around Pontypridd; in and around Merthyr; Rhymney Valley; Bridgend County; Blaenau Gwent) because…”
Please post your entries to Jessica Flynn, Media Wales, 6 Park Street, Cardiff, CF10 1XR, or email cynon.valley.leader@mediawales.co.uk; rhondda.leader@mediawales.co.uk; pontypridd.observer@mediawales.co.uk; merthyr.express@mediawales.co.uk; rhymney.valley.express@mediawales.co.uk; glamorgan.gazette@mediawales.co.uk or gwent.gazette@mediawales.co.uk.
Please use the correct area in the email subject line. Don’t forget to send us your name, address, contact telephone number and email address.
Deadline for entries is 5pm on April 20, 2015.
See the Media Wales website for further details: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/local-news/you-live-friendliest-street-cynon-8874924